If D.C. doesn't get on board with Maryland and Virginia's transit bills for Metro, the transit agency might have to wait another year before it gets any of the $1.5 billion Congress approved for it last fall.
That money, to be paid out over 10 years, was earmarked to keep Metro running. Congress had a few stipulations of course, like:
- Maryland, Virginia and the District need to come up with transit bills that change way Metro operates and is funded;
- The two states and D.C. need to agree to match the federal funds from dedicated funding sources; and,
- Each needs to agree to the addition of two federally appointed voting board members, the Washington Post reported.
Despite their political differences over transportation issues, Maryland and Virginia adopted the necessary legislation more swiftly than many officials had expected, the Post noted.
The District -- even though it was the first of the three to pass such a bill -- created a catch. In its bill, it wants more than just a promise of authorization for funds, it wants the federal government to actually provide Metro's funding.
If the District does not enact new legislation, "nothing goes to Congress," and in theory, Congress has no basis for releasing the federal funds, Maryland board member Peter Benjamin, who has been involved in talks among the governors and city officials on the issue, told the Post.
"Ultimately, the three bills have to have the identical language," Metro General Manager John B. Catoe Jr., added. "The District of Columbia will either have to change its bill or Virginia and Maryland will have to change theirs."
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With Maryland and Virginia's 2009 assembly sessions over, it looks like it might be up to the District to make a move.
D.C. Council member Jim Graham, who co-sponsored the District's bill and is also Metro board chairman, told the Post he plans to bring up the issue during a council hearing on Metro's budget Monday.
